Ex-Lincolnshire CC leader, Ian Croft, 62, has been barred from holding political office, for abusing his powers in order to undermine the council's ‘exemplary' former chief executive.

The Adjudication Panel for England, which acts as the Standards Board for England's judicial arm, decided Mr Croft sought to ‘engineer' the removal of whistle-blowing chief, ~David Bowles~ It concluded that the Tory ex-leader had breached the code of conduct for councillors on several counts, including putting ‘his personal friendships above his public obligations' and acted with a ‘dominating sense of loyalty' to another disgraced former leader, Jim Speechley.